Burning Man is a big pioneer camp for adults, only without counselors and caretakers. Here you can express yourself however you want and do practically anything, with few exceptions. And at the same time, life here is literally boiling 24/7 so that over time you begin to miss silence.
Burning Man is not just a festival, but a unique cultural phenomenon built on radical freedom, creativity, and community. Every year at the end of August more than 70,000 people from all over the world gather in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, USA, to build on the ancient dried-up lake a temporary city — Black Rock City, which disappears without a trace after 9 days.
Participants are not spectators, they build, create, organize:
- Architectural and art installations — from giant dragons to meditation temples;
- Mobile camps and “art-cars” — music stages, bars, themed performances;
- Exchange points — there is no money: everything is based on the principle of gifting, here you can be fed, given drinks and it’s all free, you can just give something in return;
- And of course, many performances and high-quality music: from symphony orchestras to famous DJs.
There is a widespread misconception that Burning Man is a music festival with unlimited drugs. On Google there is even a popular query: Can you go to Burning Man if you don’t use drugs? And I, as a person who has been practicing Vipassana for 16 years, not using drugs or alcohol, gave a definite answer to this question with my experience — YES! And it is a very interesting experience!
In fact, here everyone finds what they came for. And this is the magic of the Burn. Personally, I went to meet interesting people, recharge with energy, and get new experiences and realizations. I went to the Burn without any expectations and had no idea what actually awaited me there.
I went as a volunteer, to build a camp. At first you arrive in the pristine desert on the bottom of the dried-up ancient lake. You enjoy the silence and special energy, the insane beauty of sunrises and sunsets. Every morning I started my day with tea and meditation in the desert and enjoyed its energy and silence.
But gradually in a few days you see how the desert turns into a huge city, filling with buildings, art objects, sculptures and people. Before your eyes grows a huge city with a population of 70 thousand people, which after 9 days dissolves, leaving not a single trace of its existence. Returning to the desert its rightful place to live its calm unhurried life.
This was my first Burning Man and I had no idea what awaited me. At this Burn we experienced the strongest sandstorm in its entire history. When we had almost finished building our camp, the sandstorm destroyed our three days of work completely. And afterwards everything was flooded with rain, as if the desert wanted to wash away the traces of its crime.
We turned out to be unprepared for this either technically or emotionally. The next day we started all over again. And again the storm, and then again the rain. And so for three days in a row. Each day the storm weakened, and we became stronger.
The desert tested us, cleansed us, washed away the false, showed who is who. I badly injured my hand already in the first storm. Friends from the camp tried to send me to the hospital. But I knew that doctors would forbid me to work, and I refused. I didn’t want to be unfit.
This storm was one of the best episodes of my first Burning Man. It awakened my inner beast and showed who was around. Those who lived through it with dignity became stronger and wiser.
After the elements tested us for strength, the magic of the Burn opened in all its beauty. Every morning I arranged tea meditations, and my new friends, with whom I made friends there, complemented them with sound healing. It was magical. So many wonderful people from all over the city were drawn to us. I met a huge number of talented businessmen, IT specialists, engineers, designers, artists, top managers from all over the world.
One day I gave a seminar on MindFu – the art of Mindful Management, which I actively develop. A lot of interesting people gathered for it, including from famous international companies. It was my first experience as a speaker under the open white sun of the desert and heat over 40 degrees. And it was incredible. Right after Burning Man I received a huge number of messages in my LinkedIn with gratitude for my seminar.
In general, the public at Burning Man is very diverse: from students to billionaires, from artists to Google engineers. There are no VIP zones here, only you, the dust, and your ability to be yourself. Among the participants were Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Jared Leto, Susan Sarandon and others. Here everyone is forced to take off their crowns and epaulets, they forget about their regalia and achievements and just live like everyone else.
For example, every day the CEO of a huge billion-dollar company made me coffee, dinner was cooked by a Michelin chef, and a cool auditor filled our RV with water. But at the same time, we were all on the same wave and enjoyed the fact that we could be useful to each other here and now.
The foundation of Burning Man culture consists of 10 principles formulated by one of the founders, Larry Harvey:
- Radical inclusivity — everyone is welcome;
- Gifting — gratuitous exchange;
- Decommodification — no sales;
- Radical self-reliance — bring everything you need, including water and food;
- Radical self-expression;
- Communal effort;
- Civic responsibility;
- Leave no trace — no waste, everything is carried away;
- Participation — no spectators;
- Immediacy — be here and now.
Burning Man also has its own symbols: The Burning of the Man and the Temple.
On Saturday evening the giant figure of the Man is burned — a symbol of transformation, purification and energy. All this is accompanied by an unbelievably cool show, perhaps one of the best I have ever seen.
On Sunday — the Temple burns solemnly, filled with letters, photographs and memories of loved ones who are no longer alive. This is a deep and touching ritual.
Burning Man is a laboratory of the future, where people create a micro-society with an alternative economy, live the experience of total creativity and honesty, learn life without consumption and corporate culture. Many believe that Burning Man changed their life, revealed inner resources, helped find community and even — a new meaning. “Burning Man is not a place, it is a state of consciousness” — Larry Harvey.
Interesting facts:
- Black Rock City for 9 days becomes the third largest city in Nevada;
- Built as a real city with streets (in the shape of a semicircle, with hour markings);
- The most frequent souvenir — desert dust on shoes;
- Internet almost doesn’t work — everyone lives offline;
- Participants leave ZERO WASTE.
The hardest thing for me, a person who loves silence, was that 24/7 around you there is noise. I had to discover earplugs.
I left Burning Man very happy and absolutely sure that it was a wonderful, unforgettable experience, which I am unlikely to ever want to repeat again. Experienced burners laughed at me: Wait a couple of weeks, and you will realize that it’s time to start preparing for the new Burning Man. And so it happened.
Nevada
